Intel plans an entry-level Panther Lake chip with 4 Xe3 cores for handhelds

Q: How does the Panther Lake U (Core Ultra 7 355 / 5 325) CPU performance compare to the Steam Deck OLED's Zen 2 in Cinebench R20 according to Notebookcheck?

According to Notebookcheck, in Cinebench R20 the Panther Lake U (as in the Core Ultra 7 355 / 5 325) is roughly twice as fast as the Steam Deck OLED's Zen 2 in single-core performance and nearly three times as fast in multi-core performance.

Q: How does the Panther Lake U's multi-core and single-core performance compare to AMD's Ryzen Z1 Extreme in the ROG Ally X as reported in the article?

According to the article, the Panther Lake U is about 10% faster in single-core performance than AMD's Ryzen Z1 Extreme in the ROG Ally X. In multi-core performance it is roughly 25% slower than the Ryzen Z1 Extreme.

Q: Which current handhelds use Intel Arc G3 or Arc G3 Extreme chips that the article compares this smaller Panther Lake chip against?

The article names the MSI Claw 8 EX AI+ and the Predator Atlas 8 as current handhelds that use Intel Arc G3 or Arc G3 Extreme chips. These are cited as examples of Arc G3 and G3 Extreme handhelds the smaller Panther Lake chip is compared against.

Intel apparently has a smaller and cheaper Panther Lake chip in the works for handhelds, and the laptop version gives us a decent preview.

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Hassam Nasir

Tech Reporter

Published Aug 16, 2026 3:45 PM CDT

1 minute & 45 seconds read time

TL;DR: Leaker Jaykihn says Intel may use an existing Panther Lake U configuration (4 P‑cores, 0 E‑cores, 4 LPE cores, 4 Xe3 GPU) as a lower‑cost handheld chip. Benchmarks of the laptop chip suggest it may outpace the Steam Deck CPU/GPU but trail the Ryzen Z1 Extreme in multi‑core.

Voice: Hassam NasirSpeed

0:00 / 3:04

Intel's handheld lineup might be about to get a cheaper little sibling. According to leaker Jaykihn, who has a solid track record with Intel spec leaks, the company appears to be prepping a Panther Lake handheld chip with a "4+0+4+4" layout, which apparently means four P-cores, zero E-cores, four LPE cores, and four Xe3 graphics cores.

That's a noticeably smaller setup than the Arc G3 and Arc G3 Extreme chips Intel already ships in handhelds like the MSI Claw 8 EX AI+, which pair a 14-core design (2 P-cores, 8 E-cores, 4 LPE cores) with 10 or 12 Xe3 graphics cores depending on the SKU.

Intel plans an entry-level Panther Lake chip with 4 Xe3 cores for handhelds 2

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What's interesting is that this smaller 4+0+4+4 configuration has been seen before. It's already shipping in Panther Lake U laptop chips like the Core Ultra 7 355 and Core Ultra 5 325, currently found in machines like the Dell XPS 14 and XPS 16. So it looks like Intel, or possibly an OEM partner, is simply repurposing an existing laptop chip for a cheaper handheld tier rather than designing something new from scratch.

We don't have handheld-specific clock speeds yet, but based on how the Ultra 7 355 performs in laptops, we can get a rough idea of what to expect. According to Notebookcheck, in Cinebench R20, it's roughly twice as fast as the Steam Deck OLED's Zen 2 chip in single-core work and nearly three times as fast in multi-core.

Compared to AMD's Ryzen Z1 Extreme in the ROG Ally X, it's more of a mixed bag: about 10% faster in single-core but roughly 25% behind in multi-core. On the GPU side, Geekbench numbers put it around 19% behind the Ally X's Radeon 780M, though it comfortably beats the Steam Deck's integrated graphics by about 34%.

Intel plans an entry-level Panther Lake chip with 4 Xe3 cores for handhelds 4

Of course, this isn't official yet, and Intel hasn't confirmed pricing, clocks, or even that this chip is destined for a handheld at all. As for price, Arc G3 and G3 Extreme handhelds like the Claw 8 EX AI+ and Predator Atlas 8 comfortably cross $1,000, and a smaller, cheaper Panther Lake chip could open the door to something closer to $800 or even less.

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Question #1

How does the Panther Lake U (Core Ultra 7 355 / 5 325) CPU performance compare to the Steam Deck OLED's Zen 2 in Cinebench R20 according to Notebookcheck?

Question #2

How does the Panther Lake U's multi-core and single-core performance compare to AMD's Ryzen Z1 Extreme in the ROG Ally X as reported in the article?

Question #3

Which current handhelds use Intel Arc G3 or Arc G3 Extreme chips that the article compares this smaller Panther Lake chip against?

Have a question about this content not listed here? Ask below and TweakBot will answer it.

It probably won't touch the flagship Arc G3 Extreme chips powering this year's premium handhelds, but if it lands anywhere near what current Panther Lake U laptops deliver, it should still be a solid step up from budget options and a real alternative to AMD in a segment Valve and its partners have owned for years.